Favoritos de ocean_beach_goth

Sea Otter had no intention of sharing her Rock Crab lunch with the gull who was hovering close by.
Link to Rock Crab (Family Cancridae) observation: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/245515539
Link to Link to Large White-headed Gulls (Genus Larus) who was trying to steal a bite: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/245517880

My favorite close-up Southern Sea Otter (Enhydra lutris ssp. nereis) observations:
Female with Scarred Nose: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/165516431
Male showing Teeth: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/164818190
Praying: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/175683723
Typical Tail Position: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/151550648

Irene's Mustelids (Mustelidae) family observations on INaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?taxon_id=41770&user_id=aparrot1

Southern Sea Otter (Enhydra lutris ssp. nereis) is a Pacific Ocean marine dwelling mammal in the Mustelids (Mustelidae) family that grows 3.5-4.5 ft (up to 1.5 meters) long. Northern Sea Otters are a lot larger than Southern Sea Otters, so they are probably the largest weasel. Unlike most marine mammals, the sea otter's primary form of insulation is an exceptionally thick coat of fur, the densest in the animal kingdom. Although it can walk on land, the sea otter is capable of living exclusively in the ocean. Sea Otters are usually seen resting while wrapped up in floating Kelp beds, floating on their backs cracking open seafood with small rocks, eating, sleeping, preening thick fur, carrying one pup, or teaching the pups to dive and find food. Sea Otters eat a variety of shellfish, sea urchins, and especially red fat innkeeper worms in Elkhorn Slough. They do not go after fish. The range of Southern Sea Otters is usually south of San Francisco CA and north of the Channel Islands in southern California.
Conservation Status: Vulnerable and threatened (T) in United States (U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service). The numbers of sea otters are holding steady, but the gene pool is very small because their numbers were radically reduced during the fur trade for ladies fashion :-(

A current threat to the Southern Sea Otter is an infectious pathogen (Toxoplasma gondii) that spreads from CAT FECES on land to the sea, leading to detrimental impacts on marine wildlife. Rivers and storm drains wash the feline fecal pathogen into the ocean. Wild and domestic cats are the only known hosts of Toxoplasma, in which the parasite forms egglike stages, called oocysts, in their feces. Oocysts accumulate in kelp forests and are taken up by snails, which are eaten by sea otters.

"Genetic Link Found Between Deadly Pathogen and Wild and Feral Cats on Land" https://www.ucdavis.edu/news/whats-killing-sea-otters-scientists-pinpoint-parasite-strain

Mer Society (Marine Education and Research Society), dedicated to marine conservation through scientific research, education, and marine wildlife rescue. https://www.mersociety.org

Marine Mammals: an INaturalist Project: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/marine-mammals

Irene's Marine Mammals on INaturalist, worldwide: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/marine-mammals/contributors/aparrot1

Irene's (aparrot1) Profile Page on INaturalist listing Nature Resources (includes online references with links) for Plants, Birds, Fungi, Lepidoptera, Arachnids, Reptiles, Amphibians, Marine Life, Mammals, Plant Galls, and more: https://www.inaturalist.org/people/3188668

In shady side canyon off Digier Road, Tejon Pass. Growing at base of rotten wood. White rhizomorphs, greenish blue cap fading to splotchy blueish green to tan. Gills pale pinkish tan when young. Gill edges with fusoid chryso-cheilocystidea, which according to Michael Kuo distinguishes S. caerulea from S. aeruginosa.

Organized by retired State Park biologist Mark Faull, along with current State Park biologists and I found several shells and live snails of this poorly known species in Red Rock Canyon State Park. We hope to shed light on how closely it is related to other Sonorelix in the Mojave Desert. We were very glad to find that it still survives here, despite climate warming and drought.

Empty shell under blue oak log (a few grey pine also present). Did not have lighter yellowish "borders" adjacent to the dark band like H. traskii. Diameter 19 mm, height 16 mm, nice sculpturing. No other live snails, shells or fragments seen. Suspect H. uvusana, but could be new location (on iNat at least) for H. tejonensis or H. traskii.

Very similar to, and closest to, this observation by @ocean_beach_goth https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/47121319 and also looks like this observation https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/192299006 by @chilipossum.

Location is private to protect sensitive species (including this one!) seen that day. General area is NW Angeles National Forest, W of I-5 and S of Gorman.

@tlawson @cedric_lee @jannvendetti @davegoodward @pliffgrieff @chloe_and_trevor Thought you all might be interested in this one.

Galls showing recent debris emerging from 'ruptures', possibly signaling emergence of adult wasps at this time. Same pattern observed on other galls of this species along today's route. Host: Live Oak (Interior or Shreve; see last image fo leaf details.)

9 adults merged from a gall collected in this area:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/153729350

Collection date: 04-01-2023
Emergence date: 04-26-2023

Time-lapse of emergence:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1apsuYRoAc
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/6argssxK8uE

Collected 9/15/23, refrigerated in a ziploc bag until 9/24 and dissected Quercus agrifolia acorn.

Preserved in 40% ethanol at 40°F.

Collected acorn from same tree, same date/time as the acorn gall observations below (2nd acorn):

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/184824656

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/184823155

Dozens of identical-looking adult gall wasps crawling on Dryocosmus dubiosus galls, some with exit holes. Galls present on this same Coast Live Oak include (tentative IDS): Aceria mackiei, Dasineura silvestrii, and lots of Dryocosmus dubiosus.

This observation is for the adult wasps; could be newly-emerging Dryocosmus dubiosus, or they could be another species, perhaps parasitic.

Dozens of identical-looking adult gall wasps crawling on Dryocosmus dubiosus galls with exit holes. Galls present on this same Coast Live Oak include (tentative IDS): Aceria mackiei, Dasineura silvestrii, and lots of Dryocosmus dubiosus.

I was listening for owls not too long after dusk. The temperature was in the 50s and the half moon shone brightly. Owls had been vocal. Standing in the dark, I heard a very loud, unfamiliar call that I thought must be either Great Horned or Spotted Owl. It called again, nearby and more intensely. I found myself getting in my car quickly without quite knowing why - it was an involuntary response faster than my brain consciously moved on to IDs like this one. But my brain did get there as I found myself rolling up the window in addition to closing the door, leaving just enough room to record. It was too loud and intense. The sounds moved very quickly from roughly behind my car to in front of my car. When I turned on the car and drove slowly forward, I quickly spotted these two individuals (presumably immature), which I somehow half expected I would see up the road. They were occasionally responding to other calls from the woods (presumably their mother). Photo taken by headlights at 12800 ISO.